An extremely dangerous situation is created if, as a result of a skier taking a fall, a free ski is permitted to slide freely down the ski slope. All alone such a free ski can attain considerable velocity and, if it collides with someone, it can cause serious injury. As a rule safety straps are worn which connect the skiboot of the skier to the ski binding, so that even if the skiboot is pulled off a ski connection is maintained with the ski. Such a safety strap, however, is itself frequently pulled loose if a bad fall is taken.
To this end, so-called ski brakes have been developed which generally and most basically comprise a brake element, usually formed as a shovel, and means for swinging the brake element into an actuated position extending transverse to the ski and down beyond the lower face of the ski. Actuation of such a brake is automatic on displacement of the skiboot away from the ski so that the ski itself is automatically stopped, or at least prevented from moving at any appreciable rate of speed. This automatic actuation arrangement usually comprises at least one spring that is loaded as the skiboot is pressed down on the upper face of the ski.
In a typical arrangement the brake elements, formed as small shovels, are pivotal about an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the ski and spaced above the upper face of the ski behind the skiboot. A torsion spring wound around this axis loads the elements and a catch is provided that is actuated as the boot is lifted off the ski to unload the spring and cause the brake elements to pivot down from their position parallel to the ski into a position perpendicular to the ski and extending below the lower face thereof.
A ski brake is also known which has a pair of leaf springs screwed to the ski toward the front and so constructed that their rear end portions normally stand up. The lateral edges are extended as shovel-like brake elements and when the spring is unstressed extend down towards the ground. When a skiboot is secured on top of these elements the brake elements are lifted and lie parallel to the edge of the ski. Such an arrangement has the considerable disadvantage that these elements extending from the sides of the skis can become caught and cause injury to the skier or can catch on some object and become bent out of shape.
Most such prior-art ski brakes not only have relatively complicated actuating mechanisms, but present the difficulty of often burdensome structure on the top face of the skis. Not only does this make donning the skis more difficult, but considerably augments the cost of the skis. Furthermore this extra structure is failure prone in that if it catches on something like a root or the like it is damaged. Furthermore such complicated ski brakes ice up and become completely inoperative.